As for the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper, we find that inftituted like wife by our Bleffed Saviour, who in the Night in which he was betray'd, took Bread and brake it, and gave it to his Difciples, faying, Take eat, this is my Body which was broken for you. Likewife, After Supper he took the Cup, and when he had bleffed it, gave it to them, faying, Drink ye all of this, for this is my Blood of the New Testament, Shed for the Remiffion of Sins: Do this in remembrance of me. By which we plainly fee the Truth of what our Catechifm here affirms of thefe Sacraments, that they were ordain'd by Chrift in his Church. Then, 2. For the Ufe and Benefit of these Holy Sacraments, we find them deriv'd down thro' all Ages of the Church, and us'd by all good Chriftians ever fince, as the Signs and Seals of the New Covenant made between God and his People; the one being the Rite of Admiffion, or entring us into the Church; the other of Confirmation, to establish us in it, and to convey to us the Benefits and Privileges of it. For as in our Prayers we represent our Wants unto God, and beg the Supply of them; fo in the Holy Sacraments God promises and feals to us the return of them, and affures us of the Grant and Performance of them: Infomuch, that Prayer is, as it were, the Wing that mounts our Souls to Heaven, whereas the Holy Sacraments bring down Heaven to us, and are as it were the Hands to reach out the Bleffing, and fet the Seal to it: by the one God hears from us, by the other we hear from him; and not only fo, but handle, taste and see that the Lord is gracious. But that which we are mainly to confider in this Question, is the Number of thefe Sacraments, How many Chrift hath ordain'd in his Church: Which we are all concern'd to know, that we may neither take from, nor add to them; to which end, the Catechifm here tells us two only as generally neceffary to Salvation, that is to say, Baptifm, and the Supper of the Lord. And here we are to take notice of two Extremes or Errors to be avoided by us; the one is, of thofe that leffen, the other of thofe that increase the Number of the Sacra ments. Of the first fort, are thofe Sectaries and Enthufiafts that decry the Ufe of the Holy Sacraments, and lay afide one or both of them. Of the other, are the Romanifts, who have multiply'd their Number, and added to them. U u 2 For For the First, There are but too many rifen up of late, who to the great Disturbance of the Church, and Difhonour of Christianity, decry the Ufe of the Holy Sacraments, and lay afide one or both of them: Hence fome have derogated from the Honour and Ufe of Baptifm, and afcrib'd no greater Virtue or Efficacy to it, than to any ordinary washing. Others have detracted from the Honour of the Eucharift, or the Lord's Supper, and efteem'd it no better than an ordinary Meal; and both have defpis'd them as useless and needlefs Inftitutions. I fpeak not now of thofe, who thro' Superftition or Profanenefs neglect thefe Sacred Myfteries, of which there are but too many; but of those who thro' mistaken Opinion deny the Ufe and Benefit of them, and fo lay them wholly afide, thinking themselves above these Carnal Ordinances, and that they fute not the Spiritual State and Difpenfation of the Gofpel: by which means they fhew no greater regard to the Holy Sacraments ordain'd by Christ in the Gofpel, than to the antiquated Rites and Ceremonies of Mofes's Law; and fo take Baptifm and the Lord's Supper to carry no better Force and Obligation than Circumcifion and the Paffover, tho our Saviour inftituted the former, and order'd them to fucceed in the room of the latter. But the better Satisfaction of both these, it will be requifite (as the Catechifm directs) to fhew the Neceffity of the Holy Sacraments in order to Salvation; which fhall be done in the next. In the mean time we are, 2. To confider the Addition made by the Church of Rome to the Number of thefe Sacraments: for tho the Gofpel (as the Catechifm fuggefts) mentions but two only as generally neceffary to Salvation, reprefented in our Text by the Water and Blood that iffued out of our Saviour's Side; yet they have multiply'd them into Seven, and to Baptifm and the Lord's Supper have added Five more, viz. Confirmation, Orders, Matrimony, Penance, and Extreme Unction. The Grounds and Reasons alledg'd for this Addition, are but flender and infufficient. As, 1. They alledge that the things added by them, are all Sacred, and by outward Signs import an inward and mysterious Signification. Thus, Confirmation, by the laying on of the Hands of the Bishop, implies the conveying of Grace to enable to the performance of the Baptismal Vow: Or ders, ders, by the fame Ceremony, import the confering of the Holy Ghoft Matrimony reprefents the Myftical Union between Chrift and his Church: Penance, by fome outward Acts, is a fign and help to Repentance; and Extreme Unction, adminiftred by the Elders in the Name of the Lord, fignifies and feals the Remiffion of Sins. And therefore all these are to be reckon'd in the Number of Sacraments. But if this were a fufficient Reafon, we might multiply and add to them many more: for an Oath, which by the laying on of Hands, and kiffing the Book, fignifies the invoking the Teftimony of God; and all the Parables and Metaphors in the Gofpel, which by outward Refemblances carry an inward and myfterious Signification, might upon the fame account be reckon'd in that number: fo that this inferring too much, muft be a bad Argument. Again, 2. They alledge, that St. Ferom and other Fathers, frequently call these foremention'd Acts and Mysteries of Religion by the Name of Sacraments, and therefore they may be well enough so reputed. But if that were enough to denominate them properly fuch, then might the Crofs and many other things be added to and taken for Sacraments; for St. Auftin ftyles the Crofs by the name of Sacramentum Crucis, the Sacrament of the Crofs. Tertullian calls the Helve wherewith Elifba recover'd the Ax out of the Water, Sacramentum Ligni, the Sacrament of Wood. St. Jerom ftyles Martyrdom a Sacrament; and an Oath both in Sacred and Civil Authors frequently paffes under that Name : fo that that, you fee, would mightily fwell and increafe the Number of Sacraments. Moreover, Laftly, Their obferving fomething Sacred and Myfterious in the number Seven, as the feven Angels, the feven Trumpets, the Seven Vials, and the like; and their enlarging the Sacraments upon fuch an account to that Number, is vain and frivolous: for there are other Numbers to which the Scriptures seem to afcribe as great, or greater Mystery. The number Three might be efteem'd Sacred upon the account of the Holy Trinity; the number Ten for the fake of the Ten Commandments, and the like: fo that the afcribing any thing of Virtue or Mystery to any Number, is rather a piece of Superftition, than any folid Reason or Foundation for augmenting the Number of the Holy Sacra ments. Uu3 The The truth of this matter is, that the Antients usually rendring the Greek word pusherov, by the Latin word Sacramentum, whereby every thing that carries with it fome fecret Meaning, or fome facred Representation, is by them term'd a Sacrament, has been the true Reafon of multiplying the Number of the Sacraments, and occafion'd all the Difputes about it. So that to clear up this Matter, we may confider the word Sacrament. 1. In its largest Extent and Signification, for every thing that is facred, or is apply'd to holy Ufes, or fet to reprefent any holy Thing; in which fense all the Mysteries of Religion, and all outward Signs that belong to or fet forth Divine things, are call'd Sacraments: But if we take the word, 2. In a more strict and proper fenfe, for those Sacred Rites inftituted by Chrift, as the neceffary Means and Pledges of Salvation appertaining to all Chriftians; fo we fhall find Baptifm and the Lord's Supper the two only Sacraments ordain'd by our Saviour to that end. Now to this ftrict and proper Notion of a Sacrament, two things are here mention'd as requifite; the One, that it be a thing neceffary to Salvation; the that end. Now both thefe concur in the two Sacraments of Baptifm and the Lord's Supper, being both inftituted of Chrift, as the neceffary means of Salvation; the one to be the Sacrament of Initiation, to receive us into the Church, and intitle us to the Privileges of it; the other to be the Sacrament of Confirmation, to keep and preferve us in it, and to convey to us the Benefits of it. And as thefe are neceffary to Salvation, fo are they generally fo to all Perfons, none finding Admiffion into Heaven, but by the Door of Baptifm; nor are any cherish'd to eternal Life, but by the spiritual Repaft of the Lord's Supper, as will be more fully fhew'd hereafter. This is more than can be affirm'd of thofe other things adopted by the Church of Rome into the number of Sacraments; for neither Orders, Matrimony, Penance, nor Extreme Unction, are things neceffary to Salvation, and much lefs are they generally fo to all Perfons, fince many are and will be fav'd without them. They are indeed very ufeful and convenient things for fome Perfons, and in fome Cafes, for the promoting of Good and preventing of Evil; and fo in a large fense may be be fyl'd Sacred Things and Holy Myfteries; but they are not of that univerfal Neceffity and Importance, as to intitle them to the Honour, or give them the ftrict and proper Notion of Sacraments, which must be fomething neceffary and requir'd of all Perfons in order to their Salvation. Upon the whole then, this being a Difpute chiefly about Words, that have doubtful and different Significations, may perhaps be reckon'd in'the number of thofe curious and idle Questions which the Apoftle would have Chriftians avoid, as engendring Strife; which they that affect, dote about Questions and Strifes of Words, whereof cometh Envy, Strife, Railings, evil Surmifes, and perverfe Difputings of Men of corrupt Minds: 1 Tim. 6. 4, &c. 2 Tim. 2. 23. And therefore it will concern us more to apply ourfelves to the Knowledge and Use of these holy Sacraments, than to differ and contend about the Number of them, that we may feel the Efficacy, and reap the Benefits confign'd and convey'd by them. To conclude this Point, it favours not a little of the antient Piety, to retain the two antient Sacraments of the New Teftament, Baptifm and the Supper of the Lord both; which were fhadow'd out by the Water and Blood, which flow'd from our Saviour's Side, as he hang'd on the Crofs: which the Fathers tell us, proceeded not from any natural Cause, but contain'd fomething miraculous and mysterious; fignifying to us, that as Sin enter'd into the World by the Woman which came from Adam's Side, fo Salvation came in by the Water and Blood that iffued forth from the Side of our Saviour, which they therefore generally apply to the two Sacraments. He came not by Water only, to fignify that Baptifm alone is not fufficient, nor may we fingly rely upon it; but by Water and Blood, to fignify that as his Blood was neceffary to the purging away Sin, fo our receiving of it is neceffary to intitle us to the Pardon purchas'd by it. To atteft which, the Spirit is here brought in as a Witness, which is the Spirit of Truth. This Spirit defcended upon our Saviour in the Form of a Dove at his Baptifm, and came down in the Form of a Comforter at his Crucifixion, to confirm our Faith in both. And as we hereby learn the Original of the Two Sacraments, fo ought we to keep to them, without adding to or detracting from them. |